UNITED KINGDOM / CONGO: Fashion photographer Rankin brings a unique selection of portraits from Congo 's war-zone to London 's South Bank

Record ID: 455537

  • Title: UNITED KINGDOM / CONGO: Fashion photographer Rankin brings a unique selection of portraits from Congo 's war-zone to London 's South Bank
  • Date: 4th November 2008
  • Summary: (AD1) MUGUNGA CAMP, GOMA - DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (FILE) (OXFAM HANDOUT) (SOUNDBITE) (English) PHOTOGRAPHER RANKIN SAYING: "So I think it was a success, it's very difficult to know how much people liked the photographs and how much they just like having something because they obviously got nothing. But what was really interesting was when we put the work up and they didn't ... nobody touched it, everybody stood back and looked at it which I thought was amazing. And it's probably the most rowdy exhibition I've ever held." PORTRAITS ARE HUNG BY CLOTHES PEGS ON A WASHING LINE FOR AN EXHIBITION BY RANKIN IN MUGUNGA CAMP / RANKIN HANGS UP MORE PICTURES PHOTOGRAPHS BEING DISTRIBUTED LITTLE BOY (FIDEL) COLLECTS HIS PICTURE, KISSES IT ONLOOKERS FIDEL POSING SAME POSE AS IN PICTURE FOR CAMERA
  • Embargoed: 19th November 2008 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: War / Fighting,Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz
  • Reuters ID: LVA3M46UZAU5UK3KYX2ZO2ZW2O7X
  • Story Text: Goma and this refugee are miles away from the glitz and glamour of his studio in London. And the focus of his lenses is not trained on fashion models but children who've lost their homes and their innocence because of conflict.
    Fashion photographer Rankin, famous for his portraits of Kate Moss, Kylie and the Queen, has joined forces with Oxfam to bring the faces of those trapped in the war zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo to London's South Bank.
    The exhibition 'Cheka Kidogo' (Kiswahili for "laugh a little") aims to raise awareness of the conflict in the DR Congo by going beyond the harrowing statistics and introducing the public to the faces and families of one camp - Mugunga camp, which is home to 17,000 people displaced by violence.
    Jasmine, a young girl, mimics Rankin with her own camera made from a tin can; Tumanini, a tailor, smiles broadly as she balances her sewing machine on her head; and Karo poses happily with her baby Happiness.
    Despite the terrible stories coming out of Goma over the past few days, this exhibition is regarded by many who came for the exhibition as a true image of the people.

    "I think definitively, because it shows hope in people," says Leeza. "I think that thrives people to keep going. Despite all the hardships in their life, they are still smiling. That's a good thing, it shows to others that even if terrible stuff is happening that you can still find hope."
    Some like Karen say they are surprised at the smiles of the people.
    "I don't know if I could be smiling," admits Karen. "I suppose it's just that people find happiness in small things."
    The exhibition's 32 images are taken against Rankin's trademark white backdrop rather than in their everyday surroundings. This approach aims to capture the true personalities of the camps inhabitants - not as victims, but as people- highlighting their essential humanity and strength.
    Rankin said that we have become "anaesthetised to traditional photographs of conflict victims". By taking the celebrity portraiture style of photography and applying it to the survivors in the camps in Congo, Rankin has tried to get beyond the statistics and show the human side of the conflict.
    And that's exactly what the viewers in wintery London see: "So for me these are human beings, people I know and recognize, "says Stephanie Wyatt. "And so reading their stories is hard but I deeply appreciate the mood behind the exhibition because these are people who are the same as us, who have the same lives, only in incredibly difficult circumstances."
    More than 5.4 million people have died since civil war started in 1998 in eastern Congo. In the past year alone, 400,000 people have been forced from their homes. Women and girls have been particularly affected by the continued violence. More than 2,200 cases of rape were recorded in June 2008 in North Kivu province alone, representing only a small proportion of the total.
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